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Wednesday, December 14, 2011

NFL Week 15 on ESPN Highlights

From ESPN -

ESPN NFL Content Highlights – Week 15

Monday Night Football: 49ers Host Steelers in Matchup of 10-3 Teams

Frank
Gore and the San Francisco 49ers (10-3), which have already clinched
the NFC West, host Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers
(10-3), tied for first in the AFC North, on Monday Night Football
on December 19, at 8:30 p.m. ET. For just the fourth time, two teams
with 10 wins and a winning percentage of .750 or better will match up on
MNF. The three previous games were played in San Francisco with the 49ers recording a win each time.

The
marquee prime-time matchup will feature two of the league’s most
successful franchises, which hold a combined 11 Super Bowl championships
between them (six, Steelers; five, 49ers). Hall of Fame quarterback Joe
Montana, who guided the 49ers to four titles during his legendary
career, will be featured in the MNF open as he highlights San Francisco’s 2011 resurgence under first-year head coach Jim Harbaugh.

ESPN hosted a media conference call this afternoon with Monday Night Football play-by-play commentator Mike Tirico, and analysts Jon Gruden and Ron Jaworski to preview the final two games of the MNF season: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. San Francisco 49ers (Dec. 19), and Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans (Dec. 26).

The one-hour program will preview the Dallas Cowboys at Tampa Bay Buccaneers game.

·Jerry Jones Speaks: In a sit-down interview with SportsCenter
anchor Hannah Storm, Dallas Cowboy owner and GM Jerry Jones discussed a
wide array of topics, including his confidence in head coach Jason
Garrett to turn the franchise around.

·Icing
the Kicker: After timeouts led Cowboys kicker Dan Bailey to miss field
goals at the end of back-to-back losses, the issue of “icing the
kicker” has been much discussed. On Sunday’s Countdown, several coaches from across the league offer their opinion about the decision to ice or not to ice a kicker.

Sunday’s highlights (10 a.m. – 1 p.m.):

·Tim
Tebow Soundtracks: Tim Tebow's passion for football, his work ethic
and unorthodox skillset as a quarterback have led the Denver Broncos to
7-1 since he became the starter. In this week’s “Soundtracks,” Countdown
relives some of the best in-game audio by Tebow as he led the Broncos
to another fourth quarter come-from-behind victory against the Bears
last Sunday at Mile High Stadium.

·It
has to be the Hands: Giants receiver Hakeem Nicks oversized hands have
become one of quarterback Eli Manning’s favorite targets. Countdown’s Cris Carter goes one-on-one with Nicks.

·Shooting the Gap – Ray Lewis: Leading up to Sunday’s Ravens at Chargers game, Countdown relives a play two seasons ago when, on 4th
and two yards to go in the final seconds of the game, Ray Lewis shot
the gap and met running back Darren Sproles in the backfield to seal
Ravens' 31-26 victory over the Chargers.

NFL Matchup with host Sal Paolantonio and analysts Ron Jaworski and Merril Hoge
will preview Sunday’s key NFL games on ESPN at 3 a.m. and 7:30 a.m.;
ESPN2 at 8:30 a.m. The trio brings viewers inside the film room for an
Xs and Os analysis of key matchups. Highlights:

·Houston
quarterback TJ Yates: To illustrate the fundamentals of successful
quarterbacking in the National Football League, Jaworski goes into the
film vault to show some of the skillset that will make Houston’s TJ
Yates successful in one of the most demanding positions in professional
sports.

·Giants’
Victor Cruz: Quarterbacks are not the only offensive players required
to read defensive coverage. Good receivers do as well, contends
Jaworski, as he shows how Giants receiver Victor Cruz is a great example
of a wide-out who is adept at reading a defense and adjusting his
routes with timely cuts for big plays.

·Ben
Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown: The quarterback-receiver
relationship is one that is not always understood. Quarterbacks rely on
receivers to hit their route, get open and make the catch. In turn,
receivers rely on their quarterbacks to read the defense and make the
throw. When both are in sync, Jaworski explains, using a play by the
Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown as an example, teams are
often successful moving the ball down the field.

Guest NFL Analyst Former Chiefs Head Coach Todd Haley on Audibles

Todd Haley, who was fired as head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs earlier this week, will join ESPN’s Audibles
on Thursday, Dec. 15, at 7 p.m. as a guest analyst. Haley will discuss a
variety of NFL topics during the one-hour, social media-driven,
roundtable discussion show with Trent Dilfer, Keyshawn Johnson, and
Jerry Rice. The show will reunite ESPN’s Johnson with Haley, his former
wide receivers coach with the New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys.